Last weekend we were finally able to embark on a trip that we’ve
had to reschedule several times, to a place that we’ve anxiously anticipated
seeing: Boseong, a region in the very southern part of the peninsula, which is
famous for its green tea!
The first time we saw that the organized trip was available
was the first weekend of October, but we had a school event to host; the next time the trip was
offered, I had a bad cold in late October. Finally, we managed to sign up for
the last Boseong trip of the year through this particular company, in
mid-November.
There are several companies that organize trips around Korea
that are foreigner-friendly; that is, they take care of travel, itinerary,
accommodation, meals, and an English-speaking guide for a fixed cost. The cost
is quite reasonable, for all the planning involved and amenities included. When
we went to Ulleungdo in September, we went with Adventure Korea; this Boseong
trip was through Goh Travel Korea; and we’re planning a trip to a hot spring
with WinK. We loved our trip with Adventure – it was easy and extremely
well-organized. Our first experience with Goh left much to be desired, but
Boseong was still breathtaking.
On Saturday morning, I woke up at 6 to the sound of water
pouring. To our horror, we saw that our toilet had backed up and overflown –
with dirty water. I won’t get into the details, but it was terrible and
stressful. We had to leave our apartment by 7:15 to be at the station on time
for the bus. Luckily, a co-worker took care of the issue and we couldn’t thank
her enough. However, due to the fiasco, we nearly missed the bus that would
take us to Boseong! Luckily, it seemed, the bus was delayed. Soon, though, we
would find out that this was a theme throughout the whole trip.
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| "Maisan" = "two horses" |
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| Selfie at Tapsa Temple |
An hour late, our bus finally arrived at Maisan (a mountain
named “two horses” in Chinese) and saw the Tapsa temple hidden amongst the
peaks. We ate bibimbap at a local restaurant before taking an easy hike up a
part of the mountain. It was a beautiful fall day, but the minimal hiking meant
that we didn’t get to appreciate any staggering views from the top or gain any major
sense of accomplishment. Soon, it was already back to the bus.
Delayed again, somehow, we were back on the road and headed
further south. There were two more points on our itinerary for the day – next,
we were to see the Suncheon Bay Wetlands and then explore the Naganeupseong Folk
Village before dinner and retiring for the night in one of the huts there.
Soon, though, the guide told us that it was too late to see the wetlands, and
that we’d see it in the morning before going to the tea fields; instead of
starting our day at 8, we’d meet at 7 to go to the wetlands. Ok, then – to
the folk village we go.
When we finally neared our destination, the guide announced,
once again, that the tour of the village wouldn’t happen because the sun had already
set. We could meet at 6am to tour the village, if we desired. We grumbled. So
far, on a day where three distinct activities had been planned, we’d only
accomplished one. It was dinner time. We ate fish, rice, eggs, pork, kimchi,
sprouts – typical Korean dishes – at the folk village before it was time for
room assignments. The after-dinner process was chaotic. First, we were each to
receive a muffin and tea bag for our breakfast (only to find, when we reached
our hut, that there was no kettle to use
for tea in the morning…), and this took about 20 minutes. The room
assignment process took far too much time and was poorly organized, but finally
Tony and I were off to find our hut in the dark – there was little lighting in
the village.
Our hut was tiny but cozy – we learned quickly how luxurious
the heated floor system can be when you’re chilled. (Instead of central heating
like in the States or stoves/estufas like I grew accustomed to in Chile, Korean
heat comes from the floors. It makes sense – they sit on the floor to eat, and
their beds don’t have frames, but rather they sleep on the floor as well.) Of
course, I had to kill half a dozen spiders in the tiny (sink-less) bathroom,
but these are the things we do for our loved ones J.
Once settled and having deposited our backpacks, we ventured
out once again to explore the dark village, as it was only 8 o’clock in the
evening. We wandered around the interweaving pathways and climbed up to the top
of the fortress wall that surrounded and protected the entire village, which has survived since the 14th century! We
managed to stroll the entire wall from start to finish, noticing the empty moat
below on the outside, and seeing little else besides thatched roofs,
indecipherable flags, and a pond or two. It was a serene, silent evening.
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| A foggy view at dawn |
In the morning, we woke at 6:30 and took one more quick walk
before reaching the bus with our cups of tepid tea-water. It was a pity we
couldn’t stay just a half-hour longer to see the sun rise over the mountains
from the fortress wall, but perhaps we would have had the time if the itinerary
hadn’t been delayed the previous day.
Next, we were on to the Wetlands park in Suncheon, which is
home to the only wetlands that connect directly to the sea. We wandered the
planked, dock-like pathways through the reeds and munched our muffins, and
spent about an hour hiking a small mountain within the park for outstanding, panoramic
views from the top. On the way up, the pathway forked, and we had the choice of
the “hard road” or the “road of
meditation.” I bet you can’t guess which one we chose…
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| View of the wetlands |
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| Lunch - culinary tea! |
Finally, we were on to Boseong, what we’d been waiting for
all along! We arrived at a tea plantation – amid the peaks of stunning fall
foliage, the infinite rows of Camellia
sinensis. It was worth the wait, to be surrounded by such natural,
healthful beauty. There, we climbed once again the steep incline around the
bushes and through the cedar trees, and every view was breathtaking. After
admiring our surroundings for some time, we had lunch on-site: Tony got
jajangmyan (black noodles) which were made with green tea, and I ordered
donkasse (pork cutlet) which was sprinkled with matcha and served with a side
of green tea rice. Delicious! In the store, we purchased matcha and loose-leaf
green tea, and surprisingly, though I originally had planned to buy a teapot (I
mean, we’re in the TEA CAPITAL OF KOREA, can you blame me?), we bought two
matching mugs – complete with steeping baskets and lids. We left very pleased
with our purchase! We headed back to the bus with a green tea ice cream, ready
for the last stop of the tour.
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| Simply spectacular. |
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| Autumn is beautiful no matter where in the world it happens. |
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| Traditional tea table-setting |
Finally, we reached a smaller, family-owned tea farm. There,
we partook in a proper tea-drinking ceremony, where the proprieter taught us
the correct form of sharing tea with others in traditional Korean style. I
assumed the role of the pengju, who
serves the tea to those around him/her. We sampled a green tea and a black tea,
as well as biscuits and breads made with the same ingredients, all of which
were harvested at that same farm. After the ceremony and plenty of samples, we
made handmade chocolates that we got to fill with nuts, cranberries, and, of
course, green tea leaves.
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| Chocolate-making fun! |
As always, when this excursion ended, we were behind schedule.
After a jam-packed weekend and little sleep, we were ready to be home again.
But, alas, we had to travel all the way from the southern coast up to Seoul
before taking the subway home. The itinerary had promised we would return to
Seoul around 6, which meant we should be home to Songtan no later than 8:30.
Surprise! We arrived at our front door at 11 o’clock at night – without having
eaten dinner. Exhausted yet relieved (especially when we saw that our bathroom
was spotless, thank God), we turned in for the night. On the bright side we
were able to check two things off our list: first, we checked Boseong off our
Korea bucket list. Next, we checked Goh Travel off our future travel plans.
